


Darkness

by enchantedlokii



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Gen, Hurt Peter Parker, Peter Parker Has Nightmares, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker Whump, Peter Parker has PTSD, Peter Parker is a Mess, Poor Peter Parker, Precious Peter Parker, Protective Tony Stark, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-04
Updated: 2020-12-04
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:07:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,561
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27850566
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enchantedlokii/pseuds/enchantedlokii
Summary: Prompt: Nightmares
Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 1
Kudos: 41
Collections: IronDad





	Darkness

Peter had never been a stranger to nightmares. Even as a little kid, he would wake up sobbing out of fear from the images his mind created. Most were irrational; monsters that his mind would make up because of his overactive imagination. Others were different; being separated from his parents, for example. He didn’t exactly have separation anxiety, but he always knew that this was different. He could feel that something was wrong and that feeling would send him into a panic.

The nightmares started coming more frequently after his mother and father died. He could remember waking up and Ben and May being in his room, holding him close. Just like his parents had done when he was smaller. Eventually, they started to become less common again, until the next big accident in his life; the Hammer Drones, the spider bite, Ben’s death. Most recently it was Adrian Toomes; the Vulture.

Peter decided not to tell anyone about the accident with the warehouse. He felt weak letting someone know that he nearly died because he was trapped underneath rubble that had been dropped on him by his at-the-time-girlfriend’s dad of all people. He didn’t tell anyone about the fire either. How he had ran into the flames to save the man who had just attempted to murder him, knowing that he might not make it back out alive.

And things got better afterwards. He had been invited to join the Avengers by Tony Stark. Even after he refused, the man returned the suit he had taken from him after the ferry accident. A few days later, Mr. Stark had sent him a text letting him know that Happy would pick him up after school. Peter had been confused until they reached the tower and Tony explained that he wanted to make the internship real. He wanted Peter to help him with his projects, commenting that he hadn’t had anyone who was smart enough to work with him since Bruce disappeared. Peter was more than happy to accept the offer, thriller by the fact that his longtime hero wanted anything to do with him, even after all that the boy had done.

Then, the nightmares came back. This time they were all about Toomes. Some nights he would be dropped in the water again. Other nights he would be trapped beneath concrete. Occasionally, he would be on a burning beach. He had managed to keep them hidden from May, but he knew that it would be much harder keeping it hidden from Tony when he was given the chance to stay the weekend at the tower. Even so, he couldn’t turn away the once in a lifetime opportunity. He knew that the only non-Avenger who had ever slept there was Pepper Potts.

The first night went great. It took him a few hours before he could fall asleep, but he didn’t have any nightmares. Actually, he couldn’t remember dreaming at all. But the second night, Saturday night, was a different story.

”Please! Please, someone help! I’m down here!” Peter kept crying desperately for help. It was becoming harder to breathe with every cry, and he faintly wondered if someone kept adding more weight to the pile. He let out a strangled wail as he desperately tried to push the debris up and off of him, whimpering when he once again collapsed against the cold floor.

Panic filled his chest as he made another effort, hearing dozens of crackling noises. He was sure that he had broken some bones and he would definitely be hurting in the morning. That was, if he survived until morning. At this rate, he wasn’t sure he would ever be freed from the terrifying pressure.

Just as he was about to faint, the boy heard someone calling to him. He blinked and the scene changed. He gasped for air, still feeling the pressure on his chest. “I-I can’t breathe,” he cried, not realizing at first that he was at the tower and that he wasn’t alone in the room. He jumped as someone touched his shoulder, turning with wide, frantic eyes to face a worried Tony.

”Hey, hey, Pete, it’s okay,” he told him, gently taking one of the teenager’s hands and laying it on his chest. “Feel that, Buddy? You’re breathing. You’re okay.”

Peter shook his head. He couldn’t breathe. Why did he not understand? How could he not see that Peter couldn’t breathe? How did he not realize that he was trapped and he was being crushed and— “h-help me.”

”You’re okay,” Tony repeated, his voice soft. Peter was sure it was the softest he had ever heard it. He kept one had on the boy’s chest and ran one through his hair in an attempt to comfort him. “Just take slow breaths, Kiddo. It was just a nightmare. You’re safe. I _promise_.”

Peter hesitated before nodding slowly, trying to calm himself. It took a few minutes, but he finally took a shaky breath and closed his eyes, letting his muscles relax slightly. “I-I’m okay,” he murmured, his voice sounding tired. “I’m okay.”

”That’s right,” Tony told him. “You’re just fine, Pete. You want to sit up?”

Peter nodded and let the man help him sit up in the bed without protest. Then he sighed and looked down. “S-Sorry.”

”No, don’t apologize,” he replied sternly, sure to let Peter know that there was no room for argument. “Kid, everyone who has ever lived in this tower has had nightmares. It’s okay, I promise. It’s perfectly normal.”

Peter blinked up at him uncertainly. He couldn’t see any of the Avengers having nightmares. It seemed so childish. But he didn’t think that Tony had any reason to lie to him either.

When the kid didn’t speak up, Tony pushed them hair out of his face. “Do you want to talk about it? I know it’s hard, but I swear to you it helps.”

”H-how do you know?” Peter questioned. The last thing he wanted was to tell Mr. Stark about his nightmares. It was ridiculous. He was supposed to be a hero, not a child.

”Because I’ve been there,” he told him carefully. “I know it hurts to talk about them, but I promise that it’s so much better when you don’t have to keep it to yourself. It’s not healthy to bottle it all up. Trust me with that one. All it does is drive a wedge between you and the people who are worried about you.”

Peter thought about it for a moment, looking down again as he fidgeted with the string in his hands. Part of him did want to talk about it, but another part of him said not to. Talking about the nightmares surely couldn’t make them stop, but maybe it would make it easier. Maybe it would keep him sane if nothing else.

”I won’t force you to tell me,” Tony continued after a beat of silence. “But if you want to, you can. Or I can just sit here for a bit if you want. Sometimes it helps just to have someone there with you.”

Peter sighed, glancing over slightly but still not looking up. “It. . . It was about the Vulture,” he said quietly. “The, um, the guy with the Chitauri weapons?”

Tony nodded. “I remember,” he assured the boy as he paused, seemingly looking for an answer to his question. He thought about saying something more, but he wasn’t sure what to say. So instead he let the boy elaborate in his own time.

”I. . . On the night of homecoming he found out I’m Spider-Man,” Peter continued. “He was. . . Well, funny story. . . My date was his daughter and they started talking about the Washington Monument incident. He put two and two together when I said I wasn’t in the elevator when it happened. That’s why I went after him.”

Peter was quiet for a moment as he collected his thoughts. So much happened that night, and he wasn’t sure how much he needed to say. “I followed him to an old warehouse, and he started to attack me. Or, well. . . I thought he was attacking me, but it turns out he was aiming for the support beams. He. . . He destroyed them all, and then the building fell on me. . .”

Tony’s eyes widened slightly at the story. “Oh, Pete,” he murmured, rubbing the boy’s shoulder. “You could have told me.”

”I know,” Peter sighed. Truthfully, he had wanted to tell Mr. Stark, but he chickened out every time he thought of it. “It’s just really hard. I didn’t think I was going to make it out, and I wasn’t ready to. . . _Die_.”

“But you _did_ make it out,” Tony reminded him. “And I’m proud of you for that. Not only did you get out, but you went on and kept fighting until you brought him down. Most people would have given up then and there.”

Peter just shrugged, not sure what to say. He was grateful when Tony didn’t push him to say more. “Hey, it’s almost daylight. How about we go make pancakes and then we can just sit and watch TV for a bit? How does that sound?”

Peter gave him a small smile at the suggestion. “Yeah, okay,” he replied. “That. . . That sounds nice, Mr. Stark.”

”Great,” Tony returned the smile as he spoke. “Let’s go, Kid.”


End file.
